Frost and Snow
by foxtailred
Summary: What if Anna never unfroze, and Elsa had despaired to the point of death? What if the Man in the Moon pitied her, took away her memories, and because of her kindness, made her a guardian so she could have a second chance? And most of all, what would happen if Elsa met Jack Frost - someone just like her? AU - Anna dies, Elsa becomes a Guardian.
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

The first thing she remembered was that everything was dark.

But not cold – she was never cold.

Then, when she sat up, and opened her eyes, she saw that everything in the place she was in sparkled. It glimmered, and was hard, and slippery beneath her hands.

Everything was made of ice.

The room she was in was beautiful, and large, but she could barely see. She sat on the edge of her bed, waiting. There was nothing else to do.

It could have been a minute, it could have been a month, it could have been a millennium.

But then, the moon rose.

It was so big_, _she remembers, and it was so _bright_. It took the darkness and her breath away. It was the first light she had ever seen, and it was beautiful.

The moonlight reflected and glanced off of everything in her room, and the light shone through the one window in her room that she had not noticed before. And as she watched, the moon rose higher, and higher. When the moonlight hit her face, a voice, and an image, rang through her head.

_This is you_, a gentle voice said – and for the first time in forever, she saw herself – all big, pale eyes, and fair, pale hair.

_Your name, _the voice continued, _is the Snow Queen_. _And you will wait until they come to take you._

So the Snow Queen waited, in that room of ice, and waited for them to come. She didn't know who "they" were, but there was nothing else for her to do. So she waited, and waited…


	2. Chapter 2

"No! Not again!" Bunny howled, "_When_ _I_ _said it, I meant it!" _

Meanwhile, North was staring anxiously at the globe, and Tooth was directing her fairies by talking faster than humanely possible. Sandy was standing on the side, studying the elves, who were, as usual, just eating cookies and grinning stupidly. Jack, of course, was perched precariously on top of his staff, looking like he was on the verge of laughter while staring at Bunny, who was throwing a tantrum.

"Well, calm down, Mick," Jack said, tilting his head to the side, "Actually, no, I think I'll stick to Kangaroo. Mick just doesn't sound the same."

Bunnymund stomped his foot, furious. "The blizzard of '68 just wasn't enough, was it? You just _had_ to make another one! And you could've done it on _any other day_! But no! You just had to set it on Easter! Again! _What did I ever do to you_?"

"Oh, calm down, Bunny," Jack said, grinning, "It's not the end of the world. I mean, snow just makes it easier for kids to find the eggs, right? I just made the kids happier!"

The Easter Bunny was about to furiously retort when North raised one large hand.

"Enough!" North bellowed, "I called you all in here for an actual _reason! _ The Man in the Moon has to say something, and he didn't come here to listen to you two argue about _colored eggs!" _

Sandy pointed to his head, which sported a question mark.

"I don't know, Sandy, but when Manny speaks, you listen," North said, "and he is about to speak soon. I can feel it. _In my belly." _

The Guardians had learned long ago to not argue with _the belly_.

Tooth turned around, her colorful wings fluttering as she finally stopped her crazy speed talking.

"He's right, guys. The Man in the Moon almost never talks to us. It's probably pretty important."

"_But he did it again! I mean, on Easter! He just can't get enough attention, can he –" _

"Ok, Bunny! It was just on Pennsylvania! Jamie wanted snow! I couldn't just ignore Jamie, he was my first belie-"

"Ok, seriously, stop," Tooth said firmly, "Manny's about to talk …"

Just then, the moon glowed, brighter than ever before.

Everyone shut up, and looked up with anticipation.

The moon light gathered into a brilliantly bright beam, and pointed to a small sector, with symbols carved into it, and all the Guardians hurriedly ran over. They were confused beyond belief. The moon rarely did anything.

They all gathered around the sector. Suddenly, the sector split into quarters, and from the depths of the ground, there rose a dazzling, blue crystal.

_The Guardian Crystal._

Tooth sucked in a breath. "Do you guys know what this means?"

"Impossible," North breathed out.

The Sandman's head was whirring with question marks and exclamation points, each one larger than the next.

The Easter Bunny blinked, "B-but wait! Didn't we just pick another Guardian? It was this clown – right here!"

"Hey!" Jack protested.

Mist and sparks swirled around the blue crystal, faster and faster, until the whole stone was obscured, and a heavy fog hung over it. And then, a figure sprung from the gem.

All the Guardians stared in silence.

"Wait…" Jack said, "Who _is _she?"

Before the five Guardians stood a figure of a girl – young, slim, and, with no doubts, beautiful. Long hair, bound in a loose braid, hung over her shoulder, and eyes, wide and fringed with impossibly long lashes, stared back at them.

North was stunned. "I have… never seen her before. I thought that I knew all of the immortals!"

Bunny, for the first time ever, was speechless, and the question mark over the Sandman's head doubled in size.

Suddenly, sparks flew across the figure of the girl, and lights danced. And next to the girl, another figure appeared.

The five immortals looked on, disbelieving.

The figure next to the girl looked familiar – a hoodie, large eyes, a Shepard's staff.

There was a long pause.

Finally, Tooth broke the silence.

"Jack?" she said in a near whisper, "is that … you?"

North shook his head. "Is that even possible? For a Guardian to have a partner?"

Bunnymund was about to make a snide comment about Jack not having enough powers, when a voice entered all their minds.

"_Her name is the Snow Queen." _

All the Guardians gasped, and looked at each other in a state of panic.

"Who was that?" Tooth shrieked.

Sandy's question mark changed into an exclamation mark.

Jack was stunned. He'd heard the voice before, he knew it, he _knew _it, _he knew it. _

Suddenly, with a burst of memory, he whispered.

"It's the Man in the Moon."

"_What?_" North howled, "_That's absolutely impossible! Manny does not speak, he shows!" _

"I know," Jack said, still stunned, "but…"

Then, the voice spoke again.

"_It is I."_

Stunned, all the immortals stopped arguing.

"_Jack. The Snow Queen is to be … put in the best form of words, your apprentice." _

Jack stared at the crystal, unbelieving.

"_It has never been done before. But the Snow Queen is lost and alone. She has no memories of who she was, who she has been – but she has gone through times of trouble and deep pain, of times so deeply horrifying and with so much grief, that I had to take them away." _

Jack winced. He remembered the feeling of emptiness, of coldness, and nothingness.

"But why? " Jack said, utterly perplexed. "Why me?"

"_The Snow Queen is special. She is extremely powerful, and put into the wrong hands, she will be a weapon of destruction. Your mission, among others, is to make her seen to everyone. Let her be believed in. This life is to be her second chance." _

"What was it? " Jack demanded, "What was so horrifying, so terrible, that she had to have her memories taken away? And why me? You didn't answer my question. Tooth can take care of her just as well as I can."

"_That," _the Man in the Moon paused, as if he were thinking, "_That is something for you, yourself, to discover. But I will give you control over her memories." _

In Jack's hands, a small tube suddenly appeared. It was gold, and carved with symbols, and at the base of the cylinder, there was a small face, etched into the tube.

"Her teeth. It holds her memories," Tooth breathed.

"_When you find the time right, you can give her memories back. You can judge." _

Jack's hands shook as he held the tube.

"_But that is not the only reason I am here today. There stands a threat to the children of the world." _

Immediately, all the Guardians stood at attention.

"_An enemy is rising – more terrible than you can imagine. And you will need all the help that you can obtain – and the Snow Queen will most definitely help you." _

"Ok," Jack said, disbelievingly, "Who is this guy? How do we stop him?"

"_That, I know not. It is for you, the Guardian, to defeat the evil. For who it is … you will discover when you find the Snow Queen." _

None of the Guardians knew that to say – they now had another member added to their group, and now they were being informed that the kids they were protecting were now in _danger?_

"_It is time for me to leave." _

The moonlight started to fade, but it came back, for a brief moment, as if he had a second thought.

"_She is in the Ice Palace." _

And the moon was gone.

There was a silence that could have lasted a lifetime.

"Well," North said, slowly, "I guess… we go to the Ice Palace."

He took out his snow globe, and in it, there was a castle of blues and whites, of purples and soft pinks – all the colors of ice.

A thousand miles away from the North Pole, long, tapered fingers were clasped around each other, as the owner of them stared condescendingly down at a black figure.

"You have disappointed me, Pitch."

"Mistress, _I'm sorry, I'm sorry_."

"All that I asked," a hand ghosted over his shoulders, "was to give the children a fright in their dreams, were they are most vulnerable. You have failed. "

"Mistress –"

"_Silence._ You couldn't even get all the lights on the globe to flicker, let alone go out. You were stopped by _one child." _

"Mistr-"

"No matter," the woman went on, as if Pitch had never spoken, "this time, _I _will be doing the work. You were merely a test run."

The woman smiled, a grin that would make most scream and run.

"This time, the Guardians will fall."


	3. Chapter 3

For the first time in maybe an eternity, the Snow Queen heard a sound. Or rather, _sounds._

A thump, a sickening crunch, and a stomp.

"_Ow,_ Bunny, that was my foot-"

"Oh, sorry, Sandy! Are you ok?"

"Wow - this place is huge. The quality of the ice… wow, just wow."

The last voice, though she didn't know it yet, was Jack. And he was stunned – sure, he froze ponds over and frosted windows regularly, but he had seen it as something fun – not as a work of art. But the palace – a place constructed purely of ice: he finally saw the beauty.

The palace was an architectural masterpiece. Built on a perfect, hexagonal snowflake, the arches soared, like a cathedral.

Jack suddenly realized that his mouth had been hanging open for a good ten minutes.

Meanwhile, North, Bunnymund, and Tooth had been arguing about how to get to the Snow Queen.

"No, we _can't_ break through the walls-"

"I could make a hole with a tap of my foot, look-"  
"So what? And get hopelessly lost-"

At this point, Sandman had conjured up some earplugs and was observing the palace in peace. He poked at the walls, half-heartedly.

Finally, Jack, who had been watching them arguing with a crooked grin, held up his hand.

"Ok, guys, we don't need to break down the palace. All we have to do is – this. "

With that, he knelt, and tapped his staff on the ground, and with that, frost spread over the ground, coating everything. With another few taps of the staff, Jack turned everything, of the opaque blues and purples, into translucence. He stood up, and with a smile of satisfaction, leaned back on his staff. After all, ice _was _his forte.

"Well, why didn't you say so?" Bunny snapped, still aggravated.

"You're just jealous, aren't you?" Jack stated smugly.

"Why would _I_ be jealous, mate? We came all this bloody way to get your bloody-"

Suddenly, Sandman lit up enthusiastically. A snowflake formed over his head as he pointed eagerly at the ceiling.

Tooth was the first to notice, and yelled, "Enough, guys! She's over there!"

All the Guardians stopped, and craned their necks to stare up at the cathedral – like surface, and there was a pair of feet, clad in ice-blue slippers, pacing back, and forth – pausing every three steps, and turning back.

_Step, step, step, pause._

"Ok…" North paused, uncertain, "and _how_, exactly, will we get up there?"

_Step, step, step, pause. _

"Well…" Jack said, standing on the tip of his toes, "we always could break through the ceiling. But that would be a waste of all the ice."

Jack launched off the floor, and soared around the palace, inspecting the domed surface carefully.

"I mean, if I poke hard enough-"

"Or," Bunnymund said, dryly, "We could take the stairs."

Looking at where the Easter Bunny was pointing, Jack smiled sheepishly, and flew over.

"I totally knew that was there."

**.X.**

"Pitch, give me your horse."

Without a second's hesitation, Pitch Black handed over his Nightmare, with its head tossing and its hooves stomping. The eerie black glow of the horse flickered across the ground, like a dying candle.

The woman tossed herself over the horse, seating herself perfectly in a matter of seconds. With a simple flick of her hands, she flew off into the night.

She did not look back.

**.X.**

Jack looked at the stairs nervously. He _could _step on it, but who knew what could happen? Everything could collapse – the stairs looked more like a delicately carved work of art than something to run up on. Of course, he _could _fly up, but what was to say that there wouldn't be something blocking him? And then there was the matter of the Snow Queen herself. What was she like? Sure, he had put on a carefree, flippant façade for the others to see, but inside, he was at war. He was never one to turn down someone in need – and the Man in the Moon had made it clear that this girl needed help. But _really? _ An apprentice? He was the youngest Guardian, and though he was over three hundred years old, he might as well be seventeen. He just wasn't ready to take care of an apprentice. And why him? Sure, they were probably similar, if her name meant anything, but what was she capable of? What could she do? And most of all, what was - ?

"So are you gonna go up, or what?" Bunny said, interrupting his thoughts.

Jack shook his head. He didn't have time to dwell on pointless thoughts. Manny told him to help the girl, whoever she was, so he would.

"Calm down, Kangaroo. I'm going."

**.X.**

The Snow Queen stiffened. She could hear footsteps on the stairs, each one echoing into the dark, starry night; each one louder than the next. Her even, rhythmic pacing grew faster.

_Step, step, step pause. _

All this time, and no one came, and now that someone was coming, she had no idea what to do.

_Step,step,step,pause._

Were they here to hurt her?

_Stepstepstep pause. _

Or were they the ones who were here to save her? If they were, what were they going to do? Could she trust them? Would they be like the moon, who just spoke to her once and then never again? Were they - ?

She never finished the thought. The ornate, icy door flew open.


	4. Chapter 4

The door, intricately carved of ice, smacked onto the wall, causing a crack like gunshot to resound in the room.

Jack winced.

The Snow Queen's eyes widened. What? She had to wait forever for a_ boy? He was the "they' the moon had told her to wait for?_

Jack's eyes roamed around the room. Like everything else in the palace, it was made purely out of ice, and now transparent, thanks to his tampering with his frost. It was remarkably small – ludicrously so, if it had been somewhere for her to stay for a long time. It was also sparsely furnished – just a bed, and a nightstand, both delicately made of smooth, gleaming ice.

At last, his eyes landed on the Snow Queen, and locked with hers. Inadvertently, he sucked in a breath, sharply.

Blue met blue. Ice met ice.

The Guardian Crystal hadn't done her justice.

Her eyes were huge, and pale blue, like the ice that he so loved, and her lashes were _so long_, brushing her pale, porcelain skin every time she blinked. Her long, white-blond hair fell over her shoulder in silken tresses, and a gown, fashioned out of ice – (he could feel the coolness radiating out of it – and he was impressed. Sure, his hoodie sported frost designs, but that was from his body heat being extremely low, and when frost spread, it didn't melt. But a whole entire dress, sculpted from ice? Wow) - , glittered like the night sky, clinging to her body like a second skin.

It wasn't until frost,stemming from his staff, pale blue and glistening, started spreading furiously on the ground when he noticed his mouth was hanging open.

The Snow Queen's eyes flashed. "_What_ are you doing here?"

Jack stuttered, red flooding his pale cheeks. "I- I'm here for you. Manny told us to get you. You're the Snow Queen, right? Wow, I mean, you looked sort of like the statue. Better, though. I mean – "

She cut through his rambling.

"Wait. _Manny? _Who is this … Manny?" The Snow Queen glared at him, her hands trembling. For has long as she could remember, she had never had this sensation. She felt _warm. _

But it didn't make sense. She was never warm. _Never. _She couldn't remember anything except for being as cold as ice.

"Oh. Manny? He's the man in the moon. You know, the spirit, who lives on the moon, and talks to people…" Jack trailed off, lamely.

_'The moon…' _The Snow Queen mused. He was right, the moon had been the one to tell her, and for as long as she could remember, but how could she trust him? It's not as if she actually knew who he was.

"Prove it."

"… What?"

"Prove that the moon sent you."

Jack looked perplexed, but he couldn't deny what she wanted. After all, if he were in her place, he'd be pretty upset, too – being alone, and some guy with an overly large stick bursting into her room.

"Um… okay. What do you want me to say?"

At this point, he heard thumping – someone was coming up the stairs. The Guardians, probably; tired that he was taking so long to bring the Snow Queen back. At least, now, he wouldn't have to be facing their new member alone.

"Start with yourself. What do you want with me? _Who are you?"_

"I-I'm Jack. Jack Frost." He halted for a second, and continued. "I'm a Guardian. We protect the children of the world."

"What- we? Who's _we?"_

She didn't miss a thing, did she.

Jack started again. "Ah, well, you see, I'm part of a group called the Guardians. And…"

How was he going to explain it? He very well couldn't say "we go around and collect teeth in the middle of the night, and twice a year, time slows down so two of us can go and deliver presents and stuff. Also, I like causing freak storms."

Behind him, a voice spoke up. "We help the children of the world, by guarding their hopes, and helping them believe. We will do anything to protect them, and Manny has seen fit that you are to join us." North finished his little speech with a nervous smile, crossing his arms over his chest.

"And how, exactly," the Snow Queen hissed, "Am I supposed to believe that you're telling the truth?"

Jack could see, clearly, that she wasn't relaxed in any way. Her back arched in a way that reminded him of a terrified cat, and her eyes were wide and unblinking. Her entire body was as tense and as rigid as stone.

"What do you want us to do, to prove that we are?" Tooth asked, gently.

Silence fell for a while.

Finally, Sandy, the rational one, stepped in. Above his head flew a flurry of dream sand, showing the moon, and a speech bubble.

"Would talkin' to Manny help, then?"

The Snow Queen gave Bunnymund a strange look, as if just realizing that the enormous rabbit could talk.

"Yes, I suppose it'll do."

Jack tipped his head back, looking at the transparent ceiling.

The moon, large and whole and bright, shined through the glass-like ceiling. Jack took a deep breath, leaned back on his staff, and sighed, running his fingers through his white hair that glowed silver in the moonlight.

"Ok, Manny," Jack said, slowly, "say something."

They waited for what seemed like an eternity.

"Any century now would be nice."

Nothing.

The Snow Queen's eyes narrowed.

"I _knew_ it was too good to be true. You couldn't be the 'they' he was talking about."

Something in Jack snapped. He had been sent all the way here, to this place literally in the middle of _nowhere, _and had waited in a frenzy of nerves and anticipation for _this? _A witch, though admittedly beautiful, but had intensive trust issues and a need to have every little detail on the face of the earth proven?

"Ok, lady. What's with the questions? And _why _do you trust the Man in the Moon so much, and not us? We're not hurting you, we're here to help you!"

Blue eyes flashed.

"And I have to explain myself to you?" The Snow Queen retorted, "I trust the moon because in my isolation, he is the only one to have spoken to me. He had told me to wait, and when I was lonely, he was my only companion. Is that not enough? With hundreds of years for him as my only confidant, my only friend, is it wrong for me to trust him? As for not trusting you -", she gave them each a pointed glare, "You just burst into my room, and expect me to follow you without a complaint?"

Jack cursed at himself – what was he thinking, lashing out at her? She was scared, she was nervous – and obviously too angry and terrified to think about what she was saying.

"Ok, we're sorry," Tooth said softly, echoing his thoughts, "If you'd just let us – "

At that point, Tooth reached out, meaning to touch the girl's arm; to provide comfort.

Ice exploded out of her fingertips, forming a semicircle of jagged spikes around her. Suddenly, the Snow Queen gasped, her hands flying towards her temple, a bout of dizziness reaching her.

_"What did I ever do to you?" _she heard a voice, a voice of a young girl, not much older than she, shout, _"Why do you shut me out?" _

She saw a strip of green fabric, a blue glove, a flash of red hair.

And it was gone. All gone. The first memory she had in _centuries_, and it was gone.

The Guardians stared at the spikes that had risen out of the ground in a blink of an eye, resembling the teeth of a monster.

Jack breathed loudly. Something glowed and rattled in his pocket, but he didn't notice nor pay any attention.

_Of course,_ he thought, _she's called the Snow Queen for a reason. Of course. _

But it still didn't stop his shock. There was someone just like him standing in front of him. Someone born with winter in her veins, and she was _right there._

"Don't touch me," the Snow Queen gasped.

It was only then when they realized her strange reaction, with her hands fluttering about, with her eyes closed, and her swaying on the spot.

"Do ya think she's ok, mate?" Bunny asked in a whisper, "Should we knock 'er out?"

Jack shook his head. If they forced dream sand on her out now, there was no _way_ that she would trust them later. What decent person would knock out someone he just met? It would only prove that she was right – they were unable to be trusted, and the only way to get someone to believe in them was to knock them unconscious and drag them away.

"Leave," the Snow Queen breathed, her hand resting on the nightstand behind her so she could support herself, "Leave _now._ Leave me be. The moon is enough companionship. I can't go with you."

"Are you ok? You look –"North began.

"Leave!"

A blast of ice shot out of her hand again, this time forming a large, sharp spike, looming above their heads, ready to impale them at a moment's notice.

Sandy looked up, alarmed. He had just been trying to gauge her reaction for some time, hoping that there was _some_ way to get her to trust them. He had no idea that she had been so upset, so scared.

He was surprised, too. After giving children dreams for hundreds of years, he thought he knew how to banish nightmares with a wave of his hands, and knew when to send children an especially special dream when they were having a difficult time. He thought he knew children the best, out of his fellow Guardians.

The Snow Queen seemed to be in an entirely different category.

Maybe she was now a spirit, maybe she had been alive for a thousands of years – no matter. She looked like a child, and from what he could tell, she had never set foot out of her Ice Palace. She had no experience with the outside world, and she was young and ignorant – still a child. There was no way she could defend herself against those who truly wanted to hurt her.

_She was just a child. _Just like Jack, and just like the ones they protected.

He sent Jack an apologetic look. If Jack knew what he was going to do next, he'd be mad for a long time, but it was the only choice. He _had _to get her back, because Manny said that she was in danger and important. If they left her here, something could happen to her. If they gave up now, and if she was hurt, forgiving himself would be impossible.

He gathered up a ball of dream sand.

Jack, who had been looking at Sandy quizzically, suddenly understood.

"Sandy, no, _don't_-"

Too late.

The ball of golden energy hit the Snow Queen in the chest, and she sank to the ground, in a blur of white and icy blue, completely unconscious, sound asleep.

**.X.**

Floating above the heads of the Guardians, just through a layer of ice, the woman giggled.

"Oh, yes," she whispered, her eyes gleaming with delight, "take her, take your pretty, new Guardian. Keep your trust in her."

She smiled with anticipation.

With a simple flick of the reins, she flew off into the night, vanishing on the back of the Night Mare.

**Hey, guys! It's Allie :) Thank you so much for reading, and for my reviewers, thanks! All the reviews motivate me so much. In case it wasn't clear, the memory that Elsa has is when Anna yanks off her glove during her coronation party, and she looses control, releasing a a semicircle of spikes made of ice. I know how a lot of you are wondering about the mysterious "mistress". She's an OC, and there aren't any spoilers! :) Once again, thanks for reading! It means so much to me! **

**~ Allie**


	5. Chapter 5

Jack was used to making frost drawings – beautiful, swirling pictures that decorated the windows of children while they were asleep. But that was only when he was content, in control of his powers. The gorgeously webbed designs only appeared when he willed them to.

However, when he was upset, that was an entirelydifferent story. And at the moment, he was _furious. _

Frost spewed from his staff at a sickening rate, covering the room within seconds. It wasn't the delicate, artistic patterns that the Guardians were used to seeing – instead, it was harsh, slippery, dangerous ice, spiking everywhere.

"_Why_?" Jack howled, "Why would you do that? Are you_ hoping _that she'll never trust us_?" _

Behind Jack, North gently picked the Snow Queen up, off the ground, holding her gently against his chest in an almost fatherly manner. Cold radiated off of the girl in waves, and North shuddered. Frost slowly spread from her fingertips, an icy blue webbing that coated North's sweater.

Sandy lowered his eyes. He knew what he did was right – someone so damaged and so scared would never trust them on a whim. There was no other choice. But Jack – he wouldn't understand. He still thought in a childish manner, hoping that the Snow Queen could trust them instantaneously, hoping that he could bring her away on a rush of wind and never look back. Unconsciously, dream sand flew over his head at an extraordinarily fast rate, trying to explain his thoughts.

Tooth glanced around the room, her hummingbird wings fluttering helplessly, wondering what to do. She knew what Sandy was thinking, knew what he wanted to do, but her heart couldn't help but break for Jack and the poor girl, who was obviously terrified out of her wits. But Sandy was right – there was simply no other way.

Surprisingly, it was Bunnymund who stepped up.

"Look, mate," he started gently, "we were just tryin' to help-"

"Well, you obviously didn't, look at her, she's never –"

"Listen, mate, "Bunnymund dropped the nice attitude, his voice taking on a firmer tone.

"_No, I don't want to listen!" _Jack yelled, completely losing control, "Don't you know what she's going to feel when she wakes up? She's been practically kidnapped by these random people she doesn't even _know. _And now you expect her to _trust_ us? Are you _insane?!" _

"Jack," North said, "stop."

Jack, no matter how mad he was, always listened to North – he was like a father figure of sorts, and he had utmost respect for him. He stopped in his tirade, and sulkily listened.

"Listen to Bunny. He knows what he is saying. Manny says that Snow Queen is dangerous, powerful. If we leave her here, what could happen? She could be hurt, could be kidnapped by bad people. We must take her in as fast as we can, protect her. Then she will trust us. Now, Snow Queen is scared. She will not listen, no matter what, and we cannot stay here until she will trust us."

Jack paused. As much as he hated the fact that they were pretty much holding her hostage against her will, they were right. The Man in the Moon did say he was powerful – and if they didn't protect her, surely another villain would get their hands on her, and they didn't have time, especially now that they were informed that there was a new evil on the way. They needed a Guardian, they needed the Snow Queen, and they had to keep them safe.

The Guardians waited, staring at him anxiously.

"Fine."

They let out a breath they didn't even notice they were holding in.

"We can take her, "Jack said, tentatively, "but we leave her alone. We can't treat her like a captive. Until she trusts us, we don't force her to do _anything._"

He shot a pointed look at the group.

"Of course, Jack," Tooth said, with a small smile. "It's not like we're holding her hostage."

"She's one of us now."

**.X.**

"Oh, would you look at that," she cooed, "How _precious. _They've already gotten the new Guardian._"_

She stood next to the globe in Pitch's lair, with the lights, each representing a child who believed, on, shining small, bright pinpricks into the darkness. In the center, with all its black transparency, stood the five Guardians, currently putting the girl into the sleigh and starting to open a magic portal. She grinned evilly as she peered into _his _globe, which now acted as _her _new crystal ball; briefly reminding him of those evil witches in children's stories.

"Don't you think so, Pitch?" The woman slipped around the globe. "Isn't it adorable?"

"Yes, mistress." His fingers curled around the bars, desperately trying to seek the freedom he couldn't have. "Just lovely."

"Oh, no, dear, we can't have that happening." With a delicate motion of her fingers, the bars of the cage he was trapped in zapped with electricity. With a strangled yelp, he jerked back, his fingers stinging.

"Confinement just suits you so _well_, darling," she said with a smirk, "After all, we can't have you out and about when you just desperately want to murder me. Not to mention the fact that you have already failed me."

She shot another look at the globe, which now displayed the little group arriving at the North Pole.

"I have better things to do than to babysit you, sweetheart. It's time to start my plan."

She smiled at Pitch, revealing small, pointed teeth and turned, gliding off into the darkness.

Pitch sighed, pacing around in his cage. He kicked the bars with frustration, but he had long given up on trying to escape it – the mistress, with all her powers, had obviously enchanted it.

He had not forgotten that this was one of the ridiculously large cages that he had used to house the Tooth Fairies.

The irony was not lost on him.

**.X.**

The Snow Queen was suddenly aware of her surroundings. She couldn't remember anything, though it was odd that her eyes were still closed. She was fairly sure that she didn't sleep.

Suddenly, her memory came back, hitting her like a sledgehammer.

_Abducted. I've been abducted by a white haired boy, a giant rabbit, a strange bird-girl, and a large, freakishly tall man. _

Strangely, she didn't feel too upset about it. Nothing hurt, and she felt like how she normally did – cold.

There didn't seem to be any looming threat – nothing that she could sense, anyway. She gathered up her courage to take a look around, when, without warning –

_Freezing. So, so cold. She was terrified, and she didn't know why. _

_Slim, fitted cuffs over her wrists, chaining her to a wall. _

_A man, with a nice, innocent smile with a white suit, saying something, something she just could not grasp. _

_Ice glossing over everything, cold and slick. _

_Freezing. _

Her eyes flew open.

She gasped deeply, taking in all the oxygen she could, feeling as if she had been suffocated, but without knowing why.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, she caught her breath.

She took a look around the room. It was small, like her room in the ice palace. They had put her on a small bed, with a thin blanket, which, she wryly thought, was rather kind of them.

And she gasped in astonishment.

Around her hands, delicately encircling them, was a pair of gloves, made completely out of-

She looked closely.

- gold sand. It didn't feel unpleasant. In fact, it felt … vaguely familiar.

She could feel another headache coming on.

"It's dream sand. We didn't want you to freeze everything in sight the minute you woke up. I promise, the second you want them off, they'll come off. "

She looked up sharply. She hadn't realized that she wasn't alone.

And balanced on a ledge near the ceiling, defying all laws of gravity, was the white-haired boy.

**A/N: I thought that I wasn't putting enough lines/emphasis on the other Guardians. Sure, it's Jack and Elsa's story, but his friends, or rather, his family, is also extraordinarily important. So, I put in the lines the best I could, because each Guardian is very unique, and hard to write for. Also, the memory is when Elsa wakes up in her own dungeon, with Hans coming to visit her, if that wasn't clear. Thank you so much for reading, and for all of you who have left reviews, you have **_**no**_** idea how much they motivate me. **

**~ Allie **


	6. Chapter 6

_Earlier_

"No, Sandy, I'm still not over it. Leave me alone."

Jack was perched the edge on North's sleigh, staring out at the scene below as they sped over the clouds. Sandy had been sitting right next to him, gold sand illuminating the night as Sandy spread dreams. He looked over at the boy every few seconds, hope visible in every speck of sand.

"Jack." Tooth sighed, fluttering over, her wings gleaming iridescent in the moonlight. Though she could have easily flown back to her Tooth Palace, she wanted to stay – Jack was upset with the Guardians, and that was all the reason in the world.

"Jack, you know that Sandy was trying to help. It was a last resort, and it was our best choice."

Jack sighed. He _knew_ Sandy was right – there was no way on earth that an irrational girl who had an impulse of lashing out would go with them. But he just hated having to knock her out, basically forcing her to leave with them. It was practically kidnapping her. Jack's mind flashed to the hundreds of **MISSING** posters that he had seen through his three hundred years of invisibility. The sobbing parents. The terrified children. He had long sworn to himself that no matter how tired he was of being alone, taking someone away and changing their lives so drastically was not the answer.

But no matter how he looked at it, Sandy was still right.

"I know that Sandy's right, Tooth. I just don't like the fact that we _had_ to take her away."

Tired from saying the same things over and over again, Jack slid from his seat on the edge of the sleigh, and plopped onto one of the wooden benches, content to spend the next few minutes thinking of jabs to make at Bunny, who scampered to his warren as soon as he saw the sleigh reappear.

But instead, his eyes landed on the Snow Queen, still deeply asleep on the bench next to his. The star struck, punched-in-the-gut, stuttering feeling returned.

With her staring, accusing, frightened eyes closed, and her face relaxed, Jack realized that he just _couldn't _be upset at Sandy anymore. With the Snow Queen asleep, she was the epitome of innocence. Without all the fear and ice, he could see that she was just a _girl, _that she couldn't have been older than eighteen.

Suddenly, something in his pocket rattled.

He reached into his pocket, his hands wrapping around his cylinder.

_It's …. It's her memories. Oh, moon, I have her memories._

Then he remembered.

"_She has no memories of who she was, who she has been – but she has gone through times of trouble and deep pain, of times so deeply horrifying and with so much grief, that I had to take them away."_

_And in that moment, he just knew he had to help her. Had to help the girl, no matter how afraid, how terrified she was, how much she tried to run – because she was lost, and scared, and still a child – and he, himself knew that feeling all too well. Not to mention the fact that she had memories that must had destroyed her in his previous life. _

_He remembered waking up, everything being __so dark, so frightening__, and though things had gotten better, he had healed wrong. No one could see him, and his three hundred years of isolation was devastatingly, horrifyingly painful. _

_He couldn't let anyone go through that again. _

_Especially, _Jack thought wryly, _not my apprentice. _

_Present _

With one look at Jack, her anger and fear returned, slamming into her like a wave onto shore. _Who did he think he was, just watching her? Where was she? What was he going to do? _

_Why just looking at him take away the cold? _

She hated it. Cold meant normal, warmth meant abnormal, and she liked everything normal, thank you very much. And if a glance at the white haired boy made her feel warm, something was off.

On instinct, she thrust her hand out, expecting ice to form in neat, sharpened points. Nothing happened.

"What," she shrieked, "_have you done to my powers? Give them back!"_

The boy looked confused.

"I didn't take them away – the gloves are made of dream sand, which means they're connected to your thoughts. Just, you know, think about them coming off. By the way-"

By the time she heard the word think, her gloves vanished, and for the second time, her hand flew out, and icy daggers formed.

"Hey!" The boy cried, leaping from his place near the ceiling, "Whoa, wait-"

She didn't even pause, throwing the covers back and starting to sprint. The only thought running through her mind was "_Let me go, I have to get out of here, let me go-" _

The daggers flew at the boy, but before she knew what was happening, they stopped. She could feel her magic ebbing, and turned around, expecting to have hit her target.

When she saw what happened, it was like someone had knocked the breath out of her.

_They were stopped by a sheet of ice. _

Next to it, the boy stood, panting, his staff positioned in front of him.

"What-"

She was stunned. Then she came to a conclusion.

"_Have you thought of a way to use my powers against me?" _

"What? No! That's not even possible-"

Another wave a daggers flew towards the boy, and was stopped again, this time with a wave of his hand.

"Stop trying to kill me, will you?" Jack panted.

Another sheet of ice, this time pointed into spikes –

"_Not until you tell me what's happened!"_

Jack pointed his staff at the icy spikes, suspending them in midair. "Ok, listen, lady. I'm not going to hurt you, and if you haven't figured it out yet- you can't hurt me. Not with ice, at least."

"I _knew _it," the Snow Queen said, her eyes narrowed, "you _are _using my powers against me."

"No- how'd you even think of that? Stop jumping to conclusions, okay? I am _not _using your powers against you."

With a delicate flick of her hand, more barbs made of ice appeared. Jack winced, expecting to have to construct yet another wall to hide behind.

Instead, the Snow Queen stood there, her hands in the air, holding the ice spears in place. She scowled, in the most childlike way.

"I'm not going to hurt you," she said in a menacing manner, "_yet." _

Jack shuddered visibly.

"Prove it."

"What?" Jack had a rush of deja-vu.

"Prove that you're not using my powers, you idiot!"

"Oh… ah, okay."

Jack had no idea what to do – so he did what naturally came to him. Frost.

The second his staff met the ground, frost spread like wildfire. Everywhere, from the ground to the ceiling, was covered in fragile, swirling patterns.

The Snow Queen blinked. And stared. And blinked again.

She couldn't feel anything drawing her magic away from her, and she didn't feel weaker than she had been before. It all lead to the fact that the boy was telling the truth – the fact that it wasn't _her_ energy that he was drawing on, but _his_… and that meant …

"Oh, moon, "she breathed, "You're just like me, aren't you."

She looked across the room, at Jack, and her eyes met his deep, ocean-like blue ones.

And suddenly, she was gone, it felt like she was drowning in nothingness…

_Another pair of blue eyes, a different pair, but with the same expression, of hope and compassion._

_A voice talking, nearly singing. _

"_For the first time in forever- I'll be right here." _

Over. It was over.

And somehow, unexplainably, she found herself in Jack's arms, with him shaking her frantically.

Something inside her shifted. She knew that if she had been in her normal state, he would have been an ice cube, thirty feet away from her.

But she wasn't and, suddenly, staring into those big, blue eyes of his, something about her changed. That, and her heart sped up, immensely.

"Are you ok? Hurt? Are you awake? What's wrong with you? Why did you just fall over? Is it a side effect of dream sand? Oh, no, you wouldn't know that. Snow, are you listening?"

The wave of questions sent her head spinning, dizzily, and she clung to Jack's arm with a death grip. But one thought caught in her mind.

"What-what did you just call me?"

A frantic, hysterical laugh bursts from Jack's lips.

"You just fall into a trance, and then a dead faint, and that's the first question you ask?"

Jack carefully set her on the bed, and stepped back, trying to maintain as much distance as possible. After all, if one glance his way caused a full scale ice battle, he didn't want to see what happened if he held onto her for too long.

"Snow. I'm calling you that because, you know, 'The Snow Queen' is a mouthful. If you don't like it, I can keep-"

"No," the corners of her mouth twitched, "It's okay. I like it."

Actually, she thought it sounded odd, and rather silly, but she had nearly skewered him today. She'd grant him a right to give her a nickname.

It was the closest that Jack had ever seen her come to a smile.

"Ok, Snow," Jack said, trying to muster up some façade of cheerfulness. "Want to attempt to kill me again."

"No," Snow said, standing up gingerly, "I think, that this time, you've proven that no, you aren't taking my powers. Of course, it doesn't mean that I trust you yet."

"Obviously." Jack said shortly.

There was a short silence.

"Tell me. Please, just tell me why I'm here, what you want me to do."

It was a far cry from her demanding tone in the Ice Palace. This was much more manageable.

Jack rocked back onto his heels, and launched off, landing neatly on the ledge where he had been before. Better safe than sorry.

"I told you already, but you didn't listen."

"I'm listening now."

Jack sighed, running his hand through his silver-white hair.

"Ok, look, it's a long, long story. Just listen, ok?"

Snow nodded, being uncharacteristically quiet.

"Three hundred years ago, the Moon chose me to become a spirit, and a while ago, I became a Guardian. As a Guardian, I protect the children around the world, with my friends, the other Guardians, you know, the one …"

**.X.**

Fluttering on top of the globe, the woman pushed it away in disgust. She had just about enough of watching dear _Snow_ and her new friend.

"Ah, this is taking _forever_. I was hoping for her to trust them quicker than _that._ Though, I do say that they _do _play off nicely. At least she isn't attempting to murder him anymore."

She was in a different room this time, away from Pitch. She wasn't stupid. As much as she loved taunting her captive, talking about her plan in front of him might as well be suicide.

She gently landed on the ground, the globe now tilting sideways, precariously. She folded her tattered, black wings neatly, behind her.

"I can't say that I regret taking Pitch. Oh, using his nightmare dust to make wings is simply _wonderful._ I don't even need him to give me his stupid horses anymore."

"As lovely as my pawn is, it's taking much to long for my plan to take place. I guess I'll just have to add… a catalyst."

She reached out, wrapping her hand around a golden horn, fluted around the edges, and gripped it protectively. With her other hand, she snapped her fingers, and a satchel appeared, neatly looping itself around her thin, frail-looking wrist.

Her wings unfolded, and she flew off.

**A/N: **

**Hey, guys! If you've noticed that the writing style is different, it is! I have an editor now, so tell me what you think about her! I hoped you liked the chapter! I'd love it if you reviewed! **

**~Allie **


	7. Chapter 7

The doors flew open, and a thin, feeble light, grayish in the dark cavern, streamed in.

Footsteps clacked on the floor, a sharp sound, clicking their way to his cage, where Pitch sat, with his knees drawn against his chest. He'd long given up on trying to get out of his cage, long given up on the idea of escape. The mistress was powerful, extremely, terrifyingly powerful, with a taste for revenge and hands made for murder. Any attempt would result in suicide.

The best he could hope for now would be to leave within the next century or so, preferably not poisoned and unmangled.

"Oh dear, looking so glum, are we."

He _hated _her, with her insincere endearments and her words that were riddles, repeating again and again…

Pitch looked up, only to wish he never had.

She grinned down at him, with her teeth, blindingly white in the dark lair, filed into sharp points. Her long, black, matted hair, which seemed to be congealed with a dark, dripping substance (Pitch tried not to think about it too hard) undulated around her, as if it were a writhing nest of snakes. The woman wore a gown the color of fresh blood, high necked, with long, sweeping sleeves, and the rest of it blending into the shadows.

The worst part, perhaps, were the large, tattered wings, forming and reforming, swirling again and again.

Pitch swallowed. He could always feel when his magic, _his nightmare dust_ was being used. It was as if a part of him were missing, and he could feel his magic radiating off her wings. A sense of wrongness over took him. That was _his _magic, _his _dust.

But there was absolutely nothing he could do about it. Protest was synonymous with death.

"I know what you're thinking."

_Unlikely, _Pitch thought, _it's not as if you can read minds, can you, witch-_

"You're thinking that you hate the fact that I have your dust as my wings. And that I can't read your mind. Poor dear. So naive."

Pitch's heart skipped a beat.

_Never mind. _

"I can give you want, you know. Your deepest desire."

Pitch glared at her through narrowed eyes, hating the sight of her to the deepest depths of his soul.

"Oh, you shouldn't doubt me, dear. I _do _know what you want."

She vanished, and reappeared closer to his cage. Pitch flinched, hating the fact that she could use his old tricks so easily.

"Even with that fiasco with the Guardians last year, you _still_ want it."

She suddenly appeared, her face inches from the bars of the cage, her eyes, black and wide, gleaming in the near-darkness.

Pitch involuntarily backed up a few inches.

_No, how does she know? I haven't thought about it for so long, all I want is to leave, to leave this hell …_

"Oh, besides freedom, dear. You were going to get that anyway."

The woman, without warning, turned around, her red skirts sweeping after her.

"You want to be _seen. _More than anything else."

Her voice dropped to a whisper.

"You want to be _feared." _

His hurt thudded, an uneven _thump-thump, thump-thump. _

"That's all you want, I know. You are the Nightmare King, after all."

He could no longer see her, but he could those footsteps, the steady _click-clack _echoing off the walls.

"_That's not all I want." _

Pitch's voice was raspy, from nerves and his lack of use, his hands trembling as he spoke.

"What was that?" The woman tilted her head to the side, as if listening for something faint.

"Oh, of course." She nodded, as if she knew exactly what he was thinking, which of course, she did.

The woman turned again, this time facing him, her skin glowing a sickly pale white in the cavern. Her lips stretched over her sharp, pointed teeth, into a grotesque smile.

"And that, dear, is where you come in."

**.X.**

Snow sat on the edge of her bed, which was rapidly changing into ice under her hand, which gripped the sheets tightly, trying to comprehend the new place she had woken up in.

Jack had finished his tirade on what it meant to be a Guardian and who his friends were ten minutes ago, leaned on his staff, a few feet away, not touching her in any way. He desperately hoped that her silence meant that she wasn't going to explode in a frenzy of fury anytime soon.

"So."

Her voice couldn't have been higher than a soft whisper, and Jack leaned in, straining to hear what she was saying.

"You're saying that," she paused, as if she couldn't believe what she was about to state, "you're part of a group of _spirits_ who guard children?"

She enunciated each word clearly, though extremely softly, as if she was still trying to understand.

"That's right," Jack said encouragingly. There was more to being a Guardian than that, of course, but she looked like she was going into a shock already.

She fell silent again, her bed freezing over completely. Her rapidly spreading ice now moved onto the floor, gradually coating it in a slippery sheet. She had now been sitting there for so long that it was as if she had frozen into an ice sculpture.

Jack was _fascinated. _He had never seen anyone, even an adult, sit still for so long. Moon knew that _he _could never sit still. He was always freezing over a pond or in the process of sticking some kid's tongue to the water fountain.

Maybe she was asleep. Was she asleep? He had no clue. The only time he had seen anyone stay still for so long was if they _were _asleep, so maybe she was tired out or something.

He leaned forward, just to sort of poke her, to see if she was still awake, when she recoiled, blue eyes flashing, her white-blonde hair whipping around her face, and her hand instinctively thrust in front of her, as if she were trying to protect herself.

"Do _not_ touch me," she snarled, as if he were trying to hurt her.

"Whoa, okay, sorry, I just wanted to see if you were awake."

"Awake? What kind of question is that?"

Jack started to say something, but she didn't bother to listen. She rubbed her thin, cold fingers against her temples.

A _Guardian? _This thin, white-haired boy, who looked as if he could be blown away by a gust of wind, who insisted his name was Jack – he was a Guardian? With his horde of friends, the tall, rotund man, who was _Santa Claus? _What was Santa Claus, anyway? And the feathered, colorful woman, who was … come again? _The Tooth Fairy? _Who did what, exactly? Something to do with teeth. Then there was the tall, enormous rabbit, which she wasn't even going to go into. And there was that funny, short little man, who spoke with golden sand that whizzed above his head, and if she remembered correctly, _knocked her out._

It was just too much to take in.

And why did they exist? Oh, yes for the children.

_Children, _she mused, _I can't exactly remember what they're like, but it seems so familiar…_

It was as if someone had hit her over the head with a sledgehammer, or maybe given her a dose of dream sand again, she couldn't remember but –

_A lock of red hair, streaked with white_

"_Elsa, Elsa, the sky's awake, so I'm awake!" _

"_Do you want to build a snowman?" _

_A flash of white and blue. _

And her eyes flew open, and she flung her arm to her chest, with her heart pounding under her fingers, and her breaths long and shallow.

A wave of longing washed over her, _drowning_ her, and she felt, suddenly, like sobbing.

"You have _got _to stop doing that."

And she saw Jack, who stood on the side, looking paler than ever, his fingers gripping her wrist, as if trying to take her pulse, which she was sure was hammering much too fast right now.

And Snow suddenly realized how _close _he was. She remembered how far he had been standing, trying to be distant, and now here he is, his big blue eyes peering into hers, and his long, white fingers holding her wrist.

Red, a color so far from white and blue, started to crawl up her neck.

Suddenly, Snow yanked her hands away, trying to ignore the strange, burning sensation left on them.

_Cold, cold, _she thought desperately, _think of ice. Of snow. _

She hated it, hated the fact that he had this effect on her, this affect that she knew nothing about. What was it? It felt like something had been seared into her skin, like burning ice.

_Burning ice. Is that even possible? _

Jack lowered his eyes. He had no idea what came over him – she just said that she didn't want to be touched, how stupid could he get? Was he _trying _to destroy this sudden, newfound truce? He stared at his hands – unmarred, white pale, skin – as close to a blank canvas as you could get. So why, _why_ did he suddenly feel warmth flickering across his palms?

He snapped his palms closed, clenching his fingers into a fist. Jack didn't have time for this, he had to convince her, had to get moving.

"Right now…" Jack started, breaking the silence. He swallowed, hard. "Do you – do you trust me?"

"No."

The answer was short and blunt. It wasn't anything that he hadn't expected, but the hope that had begun to blossom now withered and shriveled.

"I trust you more than I did a few minutes ago, of course. But not fully. And not for a while."

The hope blossomed again.

But they were nowhere near done with this conversation, and it started to dawn on both of them. The temperature in the room instantaneously dropped. The frost had now completely obscured the ceiling, and the room was slick with ice, with little flurries starting to begin. Icicles grew from the ledges.

None of them noticed. The cold never bothered them.

"I know what a Guardian is, and who you are, if you are telling the truth."

She looked at him pointedly, which led him to leap up and look straight into her eyes.

"I swear." He held up a hand, and unexpectedly, his lips split into a crooked smile.

"Scout's Honor."

Of course, Snow had no idea what _that_ meant, and Jack would rather die than admit that he had gotten that from Jamie, so it was a moot point, anyway.

But she took it.

"All right," the girl said, uncertainly.

"But we both know what the biggest question is…" She paused, really, desperately hoping that the answer would turn out in her favor.

"… you have your Guardians. Your own things to do. Why am I here?"

**.X. **

"See that? So disgustingly, disgustingly slow. They've had her for what – two days? And still, she has no clue why she's there."

"Oh, yes, mistress."

Pitch could care less for whatever plan the madwoman cooked up, he was too busy feeling the _freedom. _He was alive again, he could move, he could walk. She had finally, _finally_ unlocked his prison, and for the first time in _eternity,_ he had freedom. A sort of it, anyway.

She had promised him freedom, promised him revenge.

"_Don't forget that I know all your thoughts, dear. The second you turn on me, I'll know." _

The thought echoed through his mind, again and again. He forced himself to keep listening to his mistress.

"Oh, dear, at least she's starting to trust him. She might even fall for him, the poor little winter spirit. Whatever it takes for her to go on with her little plan."

The woman smirked, and turned around.

"Pitch, follow me."

So he followed. There wasn't any other way to act, except complete and utter obedience.

They walked through the labyrinth that was his lair, and though he knew it well – he built and lived in it for centuries, anyhow – it now felt completely foreign to him. The mistress had taken over.

And when they stepped out into the open, Pitch had no idea where he was.

When Pitch designed his lair, the entire complex had been underground. He liked it that way, the only spirit dark enough and didn't need light to exist that his home was, literally, _pitch black. _

He had a good laugh over that.

But this, _this lead to the outside world. _A place he detested, unless he brought fear and shadows with him, which he currently had none of. Unless he counted his own fear, which was mounting by the second.

"Look, Pitch."

She raised a bony, white finger to the sky.

"Look at your old friend."

The moon, whole and white, stared down at them.

_Almost, _Pitch imagined, _almost accusingly. _

_Not that it matters. It's been a long time, Moon. And now I'm back. _

**A/N: Hey, guys! Wow – I had no clue that this would ever get more than a couple readers! Thank you all so much! I think that everything in this chapter is pretty self-explanatory! **

**I've gotten a couple complaints that this story is "**_**way too slow**_**." Well- sorry! That's the way I write, and for me, the plot is a huge puzzle that takes a long time to put together – not to mention the character development! **

**Anyway – thank you so much for reading, and please review! If you have any questions, feel free to PM me!**

**~Allie. **


	8. Chapter 8

Bunnymund was nowhere near finished.

"…and we have to go all the way to bloody _Scandinavia_ to find this apprentice," he moaned dramatically, waving his paintbrush in the air, "and he has the bloody nerve to _kick us out._ How could ya let 'im kick ya out, North? Out of your own workshop?"

Tooth and North exchanged exasperated glances, sighing internally. They were now in Bunny's Warren, helping him paint his eggs. ("ya can't prepare for Easter too early!) When the sleigh landed in the North Pole, and the Snow Queen was safely settled in one of the smaller, empty storage rooms normally used for toys (and after great reluctance, forming dream sand gloves over her hands), Jack insisted that they leave.

"Guys, you've got to go," Jack stated firmly, his blue eyes staring all of them down.

"What? Jack! No! She's a Guardian now, are you kidding?" Tooth protested.

"She's with us, Jack. We should be here to welcome her," North said, looking perplexed.

Sandy gestured frantically, his dream sand forming a giant spear over his head, an exclamation point, and a question mark.

"No, Sandy, she's not going to hurt me. And guys – think about it. She didn't go full-mode assassin until you guys all came up. Before that, it was going fine," Jack insisted.

"Was it really, mate?" Bunny said, skepticism dripping off of every word.

Jack flushed, red coloring his cheeks, and he dropped his eyes to the ground and clenched his fingers tightly around his staff.

"Ok, fine," Jack grumbled, "it wasn't going _perfectly_. But it was better than when _you guys_ came out of nowhere! I mean, she just saw you and panicked-"

Sandy stopped his flurry of hand motions, pausing to think.

Tooth held up a hand, stopping his rant. "Ok, Jack, you've made your point. Are you sure that you want to be alone, though? I mean, it's just going to be you and the Snow Queen-"

"-who probably's a bit cracked, mate."

"That wasn't _necessary, _Bunny. I just want to make sure Jack's safe-"

"Well, yeah? So-"

"_Enough!" _North bellowed, his voice echoing in the icy tunnels.

"What is with you two today? Argue, argue, argue. We have Snow Queen, and she is safe. Jack wants to be alone with his apprentice, to help her when she wakes. Nothing wrong. Let us leave them be - Tooth, Bunny."

Sandy nodded enthusiastically, in agreement. He seemed to be doing an awful lot to get back on Jack's good side. He still hadn't been forgiven for the "dream sand incident."

Bunny narrowed his eyes suspiciously, glaring at Jack. Clearly, he hadn't been forgiven for the second blizzard on Easter, and even less for going hundreds of miles away to retrieve a possibly insane apprentice.

Tooth smiled, her wings fluttering gently, and nodded. "Fine, Jack, have it your way. But be careful. I guess we'll go…" She paused for a second, and her eyes landed on the giant rabbit, "… to Bunny's Warren?"

She looked at Bunny for confirmation, and he perked up, saying "Yeah! Got tons of eggs to paint!"

Jack nodded, and smiled, his white hair flopping over his eyes.

"I'll do my best, guys."

**.X.**

The silence was thick, and Jack felt like he was choking on it. He was starting to regret his request to be with her alone. He turned around, and faced the window, where the moon glowed, full and bright.

He _knew _this question was going to come up, but this girl had just barely swallowed the fact that people like him existed. How was she going to take this news? He might as well have issued a death sentence. He couldn't keep blocking her icy attacks forever.

"You can tell me, you know. I'm not going to break."

…_What? _

"Or attempt to kill you again. Promise."

_How in moon's name did she know what I was thinking?_

Jack turns around, and faces her.

Her head tilted to the side, her silvery-blonde hair, held back loosely in a braid, cascaded down her shoulder. Her eyes, a pale blue-white in the moonlight, were huge, curious, a bit apprehensive. He couldn't help but notice her pose – with her glittering, clingy dress enveloping her dress she looked so _adult_, so serious, but the way she sat – her legs are tucked under her, her hands laced together. An innocent, childlike pose.

But there was no trace of the girl her met a few hours before, the one with the wild eyes, filled with fear and recklessness. And somehow, inexplicably, he trusted her.

_She's… strong. She deserves to know._

Jack sucked in a breath, and kept his eyes trained on hers.

"Do you know how I and my friends were chosen?"

"By the moon. No?"

Jack mentally reeled, surprised. He had no idea that she knew.

_She's gotta be smarter than you think she is. _

"You talk like me - you swear by the moon, and you can act as if you can talk to him. You respect the Moon. It is not that hard to piece together."

Jack, at the very least, was impressed.

"You're right. The moon chose me," he paused. The moment of truth.

"And…" he took a step closer, so he could see her better.

"He chose you, too."

**.X.**

After hearing Bunny rant for a while, Tooth decided to put an end to his diatribe. After all, someone could only talk for so long.

"Ok, Bunny, stop," she said firmly, "Jack deserves an apprentice. Come on – he saved us all from Pitch, remember?"

"But, Tooth, he-"

"I _know_ that he made it snow again. On Easter. But…"

Time to put down her last card.

"… he was ignored by us for three hundred years, Bunny. _Three hundred." _

Sandy and North winced simultaneously.

"It was just a bit of snow, Bunny. Get over it. Consider it a little bit of payback."

Bunny paused, as if thinking it over.

"Nope. Still not forgiving him. C'mon, he's a Guardian, he's gotta know that he's got responsibilities. This time he _totally_ knew that I hate snow on Easter…"

Behind Bunnymund's head, Tooth met North and Sandy's eyes. They all made a small, imperceptible nod.

Two seconds later, Sandy had knocked out the second person that day, and Bunny was dreaming about carrots and little, scurrying eggs.

"Ah…" North breathed, talking for the first time in an hour, "Finally, some peace and quiet."

**.X.**

The moon shone, bright and whole, the beams glowing in sharp contrast as they hit the black ground.

"Do you understand the plan now, darling?"

"Yes, mistress."

His fingers clenched, his skin glowing bone-white in the moonlight. Yes, her plan may have been brilliant, better than his crazy, riddled–with-holes plan that he attempted last time, but he _hated her, everything about her, and one day…_

"Oh, I'm going to have to go back to work soon," the woman said in disgust, interrupting his thoughts, "the humans are going to notice that I'm missing. And then they'll go crazy, and then…"

She paused, and turned around, so she stared dead into his yellow eyes.

"Before I forget, dear…"

She wrapped her hands around Pitch's wrists.

Pitch's heart thumped erratically.

_What's she going to do? Kill me? Slit my wrists?_

"Nothing so drastic, dear."

She released her grip, leaving black sand, whirring around his wrists at an impossible rate – black manacles, made out of streams of his Nightmare sand.

His mouth open automatically to protest – _wasn't it enough for her to use his magic for her wings? How was she even controlling it? It was his sand, his power…_

The answer hits him like a wave.

… _his fear_

"That's right, darling. You're terrified of me."

The Nightmare King had power over nightmares because he was never _scared_. The one being in the world who had never feared. And with that, fear bowed down to him.

But for the first time, he feared, and fear and nightmares had found a new ruler. It no longer obeyed him.

"_No…" _

"Oh, yes, dear," she said in obvious relish, "you no longer control them."

The black clouds whirled around his hands, cutting into his skin, stinging and burning. He thought that he could hear the screams eliciting from the magic.

"Darling," the woman purred, a crooked, sick grin spreading across her face, "these bonds will stop every attempt for you to hurt me. There's no way for you to touch me, after this."

The manacles were searing into his skin now_, scorching_, and it was all he could do to not cry out.

"Be a good boy, darling. Mummy's got to go to work before the stupid humans find out that she's missing."

Her wings unfolded, made of his magic, _his magic…_

"_Not yours anymore, dear." _A hiss resounded in his head, as if she were next to him, whispering in his ear. He shuddered instinctively.

"_And stick to the plan." _

And she flew off, the moonlight glancing off her wings.

**A/N: **

**Thanks so much for reading, guys! It means the world to me. Please, please review, you guys don't know how much they make my day. To all of you who have reviewed, THANK YOU SO MUCH. ALL YOUR WORDS MAKE MY DAY. If you have any questions, feel free to review/PM me. **

**~Allie**


	9. Author's Note

**A/N: Hey guys!**

**I won't be able to post anything for this week (2/24/14- 3/3/14) because I have a HUGE flute competition this Saturday, which means TONS of practice each day. Top it off with all the insane amount of homework they give at my school, and my other extracurricular activities, I have no time to write fanfics. I promise that on March 4****th****, there will be an update, and it will be a long one. Promise. At least 5,000 words long. **

**Thanks for reading my fanfic, guys! It means everything to me!**

**~Allie. **


	10. Chapter 9

**A/N: As promised, your extra-long update! Enjoy! **

Jack really shouldn't have worried about her not being able to accept it.

The second the words left his lips, her eyes lit up, changing from the shade of hardened ice to the color of sunlight, dancing on water.

"_Me?" _her voice was hushed, as if she couldn't believe it, "_the moon chose me?" _

Before this moment, he would've sworn up and down on his staff, his magic, and the moon that Snow was utterly incapable of any emotion, save extreme anger and terror. He'd also could've sworn that Jamie's eyes, the way they had lit up the second he had first been seen, _been believed in, _was the most beautiful thing that he'd ever seen.

It was apparently not a good betting day for Jack, because that, of course, was before he'd seen her smile.

When she smiled, it was a sputtering, punched-in-the-gut kind of smile – radiant like the winter sun. It transformed her from sharp glacial spikes to a snowflake – from harsh and dangerous to delicate and utterly beautiful.

He realized that he had been staring.

She hadn't noticed.

"Oh, moon!" She seemed _happy_, for the first time that he had met her. She turned to Jack, her eyes shining, "I'm… one of you?

Jack was shocked. He'd hoped that she'd take the new information well, in an "I'm-not-going-to-try-to-impale-you sort of way," but this? Being ecstatic?

His eyes narrowed.

"What's with the sudden trust, Snow?"

She paused, the moonlight hitting her face at an angle, giving her an ethereal glow.

"I never said anything about trusting _you_. But the moon has been my friend, and I can feel it."

And she did. Over the years of sitting in her castle, the moon had been her only companion, shining through her isolation. Reminding her that one day, the people would come, and she would be safe, and that she would know, if she relied on her heart.

And now, she _knew. _She just _knew._ It was a satisfying feeling, a completeness she'd never known before. She belonged here. It burrowed, piercing through the fear and mistrust, and though Snow would never completely put down her frozen façade, she just _knew_.

_They will come for you, _the moon said, _and you will know when._

The beams had shone so brightly then, reflecting off the icy surfaces of her room, dazzling, and shining in her eyes. But she had sighed, because waiting, waiting, _waiting _had been her life. But now they were here, and now she had finally been taken.

Jack, on the other hand, was utterly bewildered.

"The moon _talked_ to you? While you were in your fancy palace? He _said _stuff?"

Snow looked a bit shocked at the outburst, with the flailing arms and everything.

"Well, yes…" She trailed off, looking as Jack's pale face grew steadily redder.

"Every night, when the moon is at its peak, he talks to me. Told me to wait. He was my only friend in time of isolation."

Jack's face was the shade of beetroot. "_What?" _

He looked like he was going to murder someone, but with the shade of purple his face was turning, it looked as if he'd choke to death first. Snow stared, her eyes wide.

"What? Is there anything wrong with that?" she demanded.

"_All these years," _Jack hissed, sparks and frost shooting out of his staff and whirling everywhere, "_and not more than two words. And then- and then-" _

He seemed to be at a loss of words, which, to Snow, was a first. A very pleasant first.

On the other hand, she, with all her powers, had failed to skewer him, even with the fancy barbs and suspended spikes that she'd been working on for a while, which meant he was powerful. Extraordinarily so. If he lost control, lost her will like she did, with jagged edges and ice everywhere…

…let's just say that she didn't want to be in the middle of it.

"Children!" she blurted, saying the first thing that ran through her mind in a wild attempt to escape a possible snowstorm, "What are they like?"

Jack paused in the middle of his rant, his eyes huge in disbelief, his chest heaving, as if he'd just run a race – which was ridiculous. Jack flew everywhere, and made a show out of doing it whenever he could, just to spite Bunny, who seemed to be the only one who couldn't fly-

But his thoughts digressed. He went back to being in shock.

"You're a Guardian, and you don't know what children _are like?" _A short, small burst of laughter rolled off his lips, dripping with incredulity.

Blood rushed to her cheeks.

"I was in that palace for…" she blustered, trying to think of a word, "...forever! You expect me to know what these- these _children_ are like?"

Jack stopped, his head tilted to the side, almost like a curious puppy.

He simply couldn't imagine. The better part of his life so far was spent around children, flying around with them, laughing at their antics, starting random snowball fights, eliciting smiles and laughs. Children, were, quite literally, what he lived for. With children, he was the Guardian of Fun, of laughter and joy, and without them – without them, he was nothing.

Yes, he'd been lonely, but at least he had the giggles and snow to live for. She'd been alone, been _trapped_ in that castle of hers, never leaving. No wonder she had been so terrified.

Jack shook his head, trying to dispel the thoughts that disgusted him so much.

"Well," Jack said, a grin lighting up his face, a valiant attempt to hide his emotions, "we're going to have to change that, won't we?"

"What?" Snow asked, her pale skin edging even more towards white.

"The fact that you don't even know what kids are like! You're a Guardian! You _live for kids!" _

In all his excitement, he grabbed her hand, cold and thin, fitting into his, perfectly.

Jack was far too excited, and Snow too overwhelmed to notice.

"And then, maybe we'll find your center!"

"My-my _what?" _

"I'll explain later."

Jack's grip on his staff tightened. His feet left the ground, and with a startled cry, so did hers.

_Huh. I guess that being my apprentice has its perks. Or maybe Wind likes her. _

"Wind!" Jack called, his voice echoing off the walls, "Take me home!"

**.X.**

"Today was a slow day," she said, her teeth bared as she rifled through a thick book, a quill in hand.

"Was it, mistress?" His eyes were dull, barely any light in them.

"Yes, I believe the mortals decided to stay intelligent for now."

With that, the large, dusty tome slammed shut, and vanished.

"Well, the job's done for now. I just hope the humans give me a few seconds to start."

"Start what, mistress?"

Pitch had never felt so tired, so _exhausted_, and the dust was still whirling around his wrists, cutting in, searing away, excruciating. Nothing mattered but the pain, which flared whenever he had so much as a rebellious thought.

"The plan, obviously. It seems as if you get duller by the day."

"Yes, of course."

_Just agree, just follow, there's no escape. _

It seemed as if his new mantra was exceedingly dark now.

"Now, to start. Just a precaution, really, to warn an old friend, who put me here."

Her hand wound around a silver horn, long and fluted, and Pitch couldn't help but think that he'd _seen it, knew it, something. _

He promptly forgot.

The woman lifted the horn up to her lips, and through it, she whispered.

"I know you can hear me, old friend."

Her lips curled into a frightening grin, her teeth white against the black.

"Oh, you were always able to hear me, darling. But now you have no choice. You like this new toy of mine, this lovely, harmless looking instrument? It's made of silver, the metal that is partially made of the moon. Renders you immobile, unable to turn around the Earth, while I speak. Of course, it _can_ only be used _once_, and it's useless when you reach your peak," she laughed, a sound like a million tortured souls, "but it doesn't feel good, does it, Moon, when someone else has control."

The moonbeams, once dull in the cavern, beamed bright and warningly into her lair.

"I've seen you gotten your power back already, Moon. And shame, that little toy took me hundreds of years to perfect."

The moon shone, almost blindingly bright, the light glancing everywhere, the blackness turned white. Pitch couldn't help but watch, transfixed.

"Oh, I'm back. You sent me here to do your dirty work, Moon. I had, for thousands of years, and you give me no rest, no rewards."

Her snarls echoed off the cave, the moon glowing with even more intensity.

"Instead, you _gave the Guardians everything. _Love. Respect. They do nothing except take care of your precious little _children, "_she hissed, her eyes burning, "you never noticed me, never did anything at all, and after millenias of waiting, Moon. You let my work slowly eat away at me, let me turn and twist, and yet, you did nothing, giving all the light to your _Guardians_ – and they are as good as dead.

The moon beams dulled suddenly, as if the Moon had sighed, resignedly.

"And I'm not afraid of you, Moon. Not with everything I have now. I am the oldest being you have formed, and also the most powerful. Especially now that I have Pitch, the Nightmare King and his power."

The beams are so dull now, thin streams of light that are barely visible.

"Even the little new Guardian, what was her name? The one who died of grief – I would know – Elsa? She can't stop me, Moon. You very well know. False hope never works, Moon, and you should stop supplying your cherished Guardians with it."

Pitch's wrists stung, burning, and as the pain brought something close to tears to his eyes, he wondered what she was talking about.

"Once the Guardians are dead, so are _wonder, and hope, and memories, and," _she spat, "_fun. _With them gone, everything you stand for is lost, _Moon, _and with everything at my disposal, _you can do nothing to stop me." _

**.X. **

Jack didn't understand. He'd always been spontaneous, but this was just purely abnormal.

_Why, why did I take her to Burgess? Am I getting dumber as I get older? _

On the other hand, he was immortal, and never really aged - but that was another internal battle for another day.

He should have told her that nothing was safe, that there was still a darkness for them to battle together, that she should be learning everything she could while there was still time. There wasn't any time left.

But she didn't know what children were, and that was all the reason in the world.

Through the flight, he'd laughed and whooped, enjoying riding the wind as always, while she has stared, her eyes wide and terrified, her hand clenching his tightly, trying not to fall off the current. He desperately tried not to notice.

They landed, Snow's long hair disheveled, her breaths coming in short pants. She collapsed on the ground, her hands clutching at it tightly.

"Oh, Moon," she breathed, her fingers starting to clench into fists, trying to maintain some sort of balance, "I'm _never _doing that again."

Meanwhile, Jack stood, a crooked grin on his face as he looked down at his apprentice, who was still gasping like a fish on land.

"Oh, come on, Snow," he said, trying to hold back a laugh, "as if Wind would ever let you fall."

"It was more like she was trying to hurl me across the Earth! Is your pet _homicidal_?"

The wind whistled angrily, and Jack couldn't help but give a chuckle.

"Calm down, Wind," Jack said soothingly, "and no, Snow, she's not my pet, Wind owns herself. And she won't hurt you. Promise."

She finally regained her breath, and her normal heart rate. She gingerly lifted herself off the ground, her translucent cape rising from a ruffled heap and settled elegantly down her back. Her wide blue eyes looked around her, at the warmly painted houses and the black and yellow roads, taking everything in.

"Okay," Snow breathed, looking around her, "where am I? Why am I here? Is this about the children?"

She never seemed to run out of questions.

Jack tried to answer what seemed to be the simplest of the questions.

"This- this is…" Jack trailed off, trying to think of a good name, "… home."

"Home?" Her interest grew, "this is where you live?"

He winced. How was he going to explain this to her? Jack just met this girl, and though, admittedly, she did try to kill him, this wasn't a burden you just went telling people. Not even the Guardians, his closest friends, knew.

"It's where I lived, three hundred years ago." Maybe he could get off the hook, she didn't need to know the full story -

"Really? What was it like? What happened?"

-or not.

But he couldn't just brush it off. He'd been the one to yell at all the Guardians, to tell them that she'd never trust them if they didn't tell her the truth, to tell her everything. Jack had to follow through on his words.

He took a deep breath.

"This place is called Burgess, and I was born here. I had a family and all. A little sister, too."

Snow's bright blue eyes widened, and seemed to glaze over, a little. Her voice seemed strange, a little off. "… A sister…"

_A flash of red hair, streaked with white, large blue eyes, ice, ice…_

She came back with a snap, her eyes blinking erratically. There it was again, the strange visions she'd been having, the ones that came back randomly. Snow wondered if she should tell Jack about it, ask him if these strange images were something that came with being a Guardian.

But he was in the middle of telling her something important. She could feel it, see it in the countenance he wore: a heartbreakingly melancholy expression. She couldn't interrupt him now – it'd have to wait.

"Yeah, a sister," Jack continued, lost in his memories, not even noticing the odd, nostalgic look in her eyes, "I think her name was Emily. Little thing, with big brown eyes that took up half her face."

Jack smiled, a peculiar, brave smile.

"We were always together, joined at the hip. I'd always made jokes, played pranks on her, did everything to make her laugh. She loved new things. Everything was great."

Snow watched him, entranced. A change was settling over him – the playful, flippant boy he was before was gone. This was deeper, cracking the surface, knowing who he really was.

She hated to admit it, but it was fascinating.

"And one day," Jack persisted, his eyes clouding over, "we went ice-skating on that pond near my house. It was stupid, it was almost spring, the ice was thin, but we still went. I was stupid."

His hand clenched, tighter around his staff, and frost started spreading delicately across the ground, the white gradually taking over the green.

Snow didn't know why he sounded so upset, but she didn't remember what ice-skating was, either. What was it like? Why did he sound so upset?

But it wasn't a time for questions. She kept listening; quietly, attentively.

"We were skating, and I was teaching her how, and suddenly, the ice cracked."

Why did he sound so upset? Wasn't he just like her? Ice was never a problem.

"What are you talking about? Couldn't you just have frozen it over again?"

Jack laughed, a bitter, old laugh.

"Snow, I'm three hundred and seventeen years old. This happened way before I became a Guardian. I didn't have powers at all, back then."

Snow's eyes widened.

_Oh._

"So the ice cracked," Jack continued, as if she'd never interrupted at all, "and she was scared, Emily – she was terrified. And so I told her that we were going to have fun."

His fingers tightened over his staff, noticeably.

"And when I got close enough, I grabbed my staff, and grabbed her with it, throwing her away from the spot. But then, then I fell through. I never came back up."

"Wait," Snow interjected, delicately, "then how-"

"How am I here? The Moon chose me, because I saved my sister. To be a Guardian." He shrugged, "But the worst part is, after I became on, I didn't remember it, till I got my memories back."

Jack was suddenly very aware of the golden tube that was still stored in his pocket.

Should he tell her about it, that he had her memories? His hand started to reach towards his pocket -

_Wait. _

A thought struck him. What did the Moon say? That she had gone through something truly terrible, so horrifying, that it destroyed her at the end?

She just started to believe him – just a little, but it was still something. If he gave her the memories, she'd want to look at them: and then what? She'd just see how she died – a brutal, painful death, by the looks of it. She would just run away, as far as she could.

His hand moved back towards his staff. Later. He'd give them to her later, when she trusted him more, when she wouldn't run at the slightest thing.

"I remember seeing her, you know, after…" Jack continued, trying to smooth things over, "I remember her crying, looking at that pond, but I thought she was just some random girl. I had no clue who she was, until now…"

Jack trailed off. He couldn't help thinking all the times that he'd hated himself, hated the fact that he'd left Emily alone, leaving her brotherless and in pain. He'd never actually figured out what happened to her later – he couldn't even find her tombstone.

Snow stared at him, at the disgust and sadness that marred his expression, at the pain of it all, and, almost impulsively, reached out.

"I'm so sorry, Jack."

The white-haired boy looked up, startled. No, he didn't want sympathy, he _hated it, no, _he was stronger than this-

"No, it's okay. It was a long time ago, anyway. Not much to talk about, let's just forget it-"

He was rambling, trying to fill up the space. It hurt too much.

"No, it's not."

Jack stopped.

"She meant a lot to you, I can tell. It's okay. I- I…"

Snow didn't know what she was talking about, but something inside her ached. She could _feel_ his pain – it was almost tangible. She could feel the hurt radiating, and it was like her own.

Jack hated dwelling on the past. He hated the way she looked at him now- a mixture of pity and something that was very close to kindness.

_It seems like I had to play the weak one to get her to open her shell, didn't I, _Jack thought, bitterly.

"Children- you wanted to see the children, right?" Jack blustered, desperately changing to subject.

"Well, yes, but-"

"Come on! I have friends who'd want to meet you!"

Without a second word, he latched onto her arm, pulling her into the air.

"Come on, Wind. Take me to Jamie."

**.X.**

"Guys, do you think that we should wake him up yet?"

Tooth peered anxiously into Bunny's eyes, which were still open and glassy as he snored away. Dancing dream sand carrots were only amusing for so long.

Sandy shook his head vehemently. As much as Bunny was close to him as family, he was sick and tired of hearing him complain. He justified it by thinking of the silence as a well-deserved break.

"Well, Bunny _has _been out for two hours," North said.

Sandy shook his head again, and pointed to it. Two snowflakes, one large and one miniscule, floated above his head.

"So, you want to talk about Jack and the Snow Queen?" Tooth translated deftly - five hundred years of working next to Sandy had paid off.

He nodded enthusiastically.

"Well, about what?" North inquired.

Sandy held up a hand, his fingers forming a thumbs up, and then, after a pause, reversing them.

"You want us to tell you what we think about it?"

Sandy nodded again.

"I think that she'd make a _great _Guardian," Tooth stated brightly, "she's a little scared, but Jack will work through that, right? We'll be friends in no time."

Her words didn't quite have to effect that she'd hope it would have.

Sandy looked at her skeptically.

North shook his head. "Jack must be miracle worker if he wants her to be a real Guardian."

"I bet she's really sweet. She looked that way," Tooth stated defiantly.

Before anyone could answer, a large groan echoed from the side. It seemed as Bunny had woken up.

Sandy sighed resignedly.

**.X.**

After Snow threw up her arms for the second time and declared that she was _never, ever _going to ride Wind again (to which Jack inwardly snorted at), they were standing on the roof of Jamie's house. Jack couldn't help but feel a spark of excitement – it had been weeks since he'd last seen his first believer.

"Who is this _Jamie? _Is this where he lives? What is he like?"

Firing off questions, as usual.

"It's … complicated. Look, I'll explain when you see him, okay?"

He wrapped his hand around the window ledge, and gently rapped on the glass window. After a few seconds, there was the telltale _pitter-patter _of footsteps, and the window flung open. Huge, eager brown eyes greeted them.

"Jack!" Jamie shouted, delighted, "you haven't been here, in like, forever!"

Jack laughed, swinging himself into the room with ease.

"I know, kiddo. Sorry, I've been pretty busy lately." What an understatement.

"Why are you back now? We've all missed you! Can we have another snow day?"

Jack chuckled and ruffled Jamie's dark hair.

Snow watched all of this, somewhat amused and very perplexed.

"Well, I'm back now. And sorry, Jamie, it's April now. Spring would get so mad at me, and then she'd cut off more of winter next year."

Jamie pouted, but his eyes, large and gleaming, betrayed his happiness.

"Then why are you here?" Jamie huffed playfully.

This was going to be hard to explain.

"Well, kid, there's someone I want you to meet." Jack pointed at what seemed to be empty space.

"What do you mean? There's no one there."

Snow looked on, extraordinarily confused.

"Do me a favor, Jamie. I just want you to imagine, with all your heart, that someone's right there. Just do it."

Jamie nodded, obediently shutting his eyes childishly, and his fists clenched, as if he was trying his hardest to make a wish.

When he opened his eyes again, he couldn't help but gasp in astonishment at the other person who stood there.

**.X.**

"So what are we to do, mistress?"

It was the first question he had asked in hours.

"What do you mean, what are we going to do?" The woman snapped.

She'd been poring over a book, scratching in letters and crossing things out, dust whirling everywhere.

His wrists still burned.

"About the plan, mistress."

"Oh, of course," she said, waving her hand dismissively, "when I'm done with my work. If I so much as forget one, the humans would be in a panic."

"Yes, mistress."

This was so _wrong, so terribly wrong. _There was something so off about his mistress. One minute she was raging against the moon, the other she was docile, tractable; all but nonexistent – she couldn't seem to care less.

How strange.

**A/N: **_**That **_**took me forever. I hope it was worth it! **

**Thank you all who wished me luck on my competition! It was so thoughtful of you. I want to thank all of you who reviewed – you guys really make my day. **

**Anyway – introducing my new beta ... ****ncarraway!**** She's amazing – thanks so much, n! **

**And of course, a big thank you for all who read it, and please, please REVIEW! **

**A special shout out to : **

**regina di cuori – thank you so much for the encouragement! That review made me feel a lot better, thanks. :**** )**

**Tranquil Dawn-**** Wow, you play, too? That's awesome! Thanks for all the encouragement, and for reading and reviewing! **

**Hallow Moon Stone –**** Wow, I had no idea that so many people also played flute. Thanks for all the kind words! **

**Guest reviewer and 007 –**** thanks so much! It means so much to me that you bothered to leave a review! **

**And last, but most definitely not least, **

**DarkHorseBlueSky, who knows how important encouragement is to an author and has reviewed on everything I've written so far. Thanks so much! **


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